Story Created:
May 15, 2009 at 7:22 AM EST
Story Updated:
May 15, 2009 at 10:15 AM EST
SOUTH BEND — St. Joseph County will continue exploring the idea of centralized voting centers, even after Gov. Mitch Daniels vetoed a bill that would have implemented the plan statewide.
Right now, voters in St. Joseph County are assigned to one of 230 precincts across the county. They must cast ballots at that precinct.
Under the “vote center” plan, the county would only have 70 precincts, but residents could vote at any of them. Names would be stored in an electronic book to ensure no one votes twice.
Daniels gave a thumbs-down to Senate Enrolled Act 209, which would have allowed vote centers statewide, saying the bill did not contain sufficient protections against fraud and abuse.
He also criticized the bill for removing bipartisan checks and balances in the way elections are conducted.
When the legislation to implement vote centers was working its way through the General Assembly, the county election board recommended forming a committee to explore the issue.
That committee will move forward, they said Wednesday, even though the bill didn’t become law.
“We really need it,” said Murray Winn, the Republican member of the board. “We’ve got to do something.”
James Korpal, the board’s Democratic member, has said vote centers would save the money spent on staffing 230 locations on Election Day.
“It’s getting unmanageable,” he said.
Vote centers also could speed up the absentee process. Right now, absentee ballots must be separated by precinct and then delivered to each of the 230 locations to be counted.
County Clerk Rita Glenn has expressed some concern about the logistics of the move.
Every vote center, for example, would need to have every variety of ballot on hand. In a busy year, with school board, state Senate, state House, congressional and county candidates all running for office, that means a lot of ballots.
While St. Joseph County officials have kept their feelings on the veto itself quiet, Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita has not.
Rokita, Indiana’s chief election official, blasted the veto.
“How ironic it is that the one local government reform that actually passes the legislature ends up getting vetoed,” said a statement from Rokita, a Republican. “Vote centers is perhaps the only local government reform that so far has been proven unequivocally to save taxpayers money.”
He expressed hope it could be fit into the budget bill, which lawmakers are expected to address during an upcoming special session.
